Young entrepreneurs from across the world learn about the development of the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area on April 26. It is the only national-level economic-technological development area in Beijing and an important window to reform and opening up of the capital city (COURTESY PHOTO) 

Reacting hydrogen and oxygen produces water; this is chemistry 101. A similar chemical reaction occurs when people with different backgrounds and experiences meet—when they have mutual interests and exchange ideas, a new bond will take shape, producing infinite possibilities.

And this is exactly what happened among a group of young business minds from all over the world who recently came together in the Chinese capital of Beijing from April 25 to 26 for the first-ever International Cooperation and Development Conference for Young Entrepreneurs.

Themed Revitalizing Growth, Win-Win Cooperation, the conference uncovered new paths for global economic recovery in the post-pandemic era, attracting more than 200 business representatives from over 40 countries worldwide in the process. Their combined insights and actions proved a recipe for creative combustion within the business sector.

Essential encounters 

Malaysian Deborah Melissa Bottreau was among the 200-plus participants. She is both the founding secretary general of the ASEAN Young Entrepreneurs Council, a network of government-endorsed young entrepreneur associations from all 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the owner of Sienna Design, a boutique creative agency that provides branding, marketing, website development, digital marketing and graphic design services to the region.

Bottreau considered this gathering of global young entrepreneurs "good timing" to "reignite the relationship with their Chinese counterparts" as the country is expanding its opening up.

"The organizer has invited entrepreneurs and like-minded people from different regions like Europe, South America and Africa, so we can all connect with parties outside our own countries and regions," she told Beijing Review.

"As an entrepreneur myself, I would also definitely be interested to work with China," Bottreau continued. "Have I done business with my Chinese peers so far? No. Do I want to? Yes."

One such peer was Deng Yahui, founder of Hangzhou Homie Technology Co. Ltd., a cross-border live-commerce service provider that connects Chinese brands with overseas consumers. Deng showcases a special interest in Southeast Asian markets, such as Malaysia, given their growing demand for live-streaming services.

"We have sufficient knowledge of domestic companies but, truth be told, we've mostly communicated with our overseas consumers through online platforms. So I considered this conference a nice opportunity to deepen our understanding of these clients," Deng told Beijing Review, adding he was paying special attention to an ASEAN-focused panel discussion on regional economic integration—where Bottreau happened to be speaking. And so their paths crossed—business chemistry in the making.

Another such encounter took place between Win Htet Maung Maung, Secretary General of the Myanmar Young Entrepreneurs Association in the western portion of Southeast Asian mainland, and Delphine Camara, head of the Partnerships and Investments Network of Young Entrepreneurs of Guinea in West Africa. The two first built a connection through Chinese superapp WeChat and ended up taking a driverless ride together across the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area during a sideline event demonstrating China's progress in smart transportation hosted by the conference's organizer, the China International Youth Exchange Center (CIYEC). The CIYEC is the Communist Youth League of China (CYLC) Central Committee's organization for international youth exchange and cooperation.

The CYLC is a mass youth organization under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, according to its constitution. It had 73.58 million members as of late 2022.

"I've made new friends from different continents, and this is just the beginning. Not only can we build connections with each other, but we can also introduce each other to our respective business partners," Maung told Beijing Review.

By all accounts, "collaboration" was the conference's No.1 buzzword. Bottreau stated that teaming up with entrepreneurs from other countries was very different from working with domestic ones, explaining how "empathy" is crucial in building these overseas relationships. "Empathy is the foundation of trust and collaboration," she summarized.

Extensive exchanges 

Karim Fahssis, head of Decarbonization, China at A.P. Moller-Maersk, an integrated container logistics company headquartered in Denmark, Northern Europe, echoed Bottreau's opinion—combining each other's strengths is fundamental.

"China is in a good position to become the world's principal carbon-neutral energy production hub in the current decade. This is mainly driven by its unique competitive advantages such as abundant renewable power resources, an unrivaled equipment supply chain and, more importantly, the government's commitment to the dual carbon goals [with the country peaking carbon emissions before 2030 and reaching carbon neutrality before 2060]," Fahssis told Beijing Review.

He added that Maersk is a frontrunner in decarbonization and is exploring opportunities to work with green fuel partners in China to decarbonize shipping and establish future hubs for green shipping in the country. The decarbonization of shipping either requires an onboard carbon-capture system (which doesn't exist yet) or the construction of new vessels that burn something other than fuel oil—such as green methanol.

"We believe such partnerships are essential for the green methanol scale-up needed on resources wholly available within China at commercially viable prices, which will in turn contribute significantly to reducing our activities' negative climate impact," he said.

The conference also organized onsite polls among attendees on attitudes toward the current global economic landscape to gain a better understanding of how different people assess the same issue.

Approximately 60 percent of the survey's participants were optimistic about global economic recovery; more than one third believed artificial intelligence to be the sector with the highest potential in the future. Respondents also widely held technological innovation and dynamic new multilateral trade agreements would become major driving forces for economic growth in 2023.

The gathering also witnessed the launch of the International Alliance of Young Entrepreneur Associations, a new platform for cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative, which China proposed in 2013 to boost connectivity along and beyond the ancient Silk Road routes, and building an open world economy. As of April 26, organizations from 50 countries had applied to join the alliance, with 33 of them set to become initial members.

All in all, the conference set the right stage for exchange and cooperation. Bottreau and Deng already discussed meeting up in Malaysia in the near future, Maung and Camara intended to tell their friends about their interesting experiences and Fahssis got one step closer to achieving his dream of establishing future hubs for green shipping in China.

Fahssis, a resident of China since 2005, also voiced his appreciation for the "entrepreneurial mindset" of the Chinese people.

"China is full of entrepreneurs," he said. "I am amazed by a shop owner who managed to organically grow [his business] through hard work and who now runs several restaurants in my neighborhood. I believe Chinese businesspersons are driven by the motivation of entrepreneurial pursuits everywhere around them."

He added this mindset is even more prevalent among young people having grown up with China's reform and opening up.

"Young entrepreneurs are the backbone of global economic development and future climate solutions; young entrepreneurs throughout the world should strive for a peaceful world and a climate-positive planet," he said. "It is now their turn to take the lead on these fronts." BR

(Print Edition: Creative Combustion) 

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon 

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